Northgate, Newnan and East Coweta High Schools recognized as 2019 AP Honors schools

All three Coweta County School System High Schools have been named as 2019 Advanced Placement Honor Schools, based on AP participation and performance rates of the class of 2018.

There are several categories of AP Honors that high schools may earn each year, based on student performance. Northgate High School, Newnan High School and East Coweta High School were each named as AP STEM, STEM Achievement and Humanities Schools, and Northgate High School was named an AP Merit School, for achievement by students in the class of 2018.

Advanced Placement (AP) is a program created by the College Board which offers college-level curricula and examinations to high school students in several subjects. It is one of several ways Georgia students can access college-level learning in high school.AP exams are administered by the College Board, which also administers the SAT, and students who receive a 3, 4, or 5 on an AP exam may receive college credit.

Coweta County high schools earned distinction as:

AP Humanities Schools - East Coweta High, Newnan High and Northgate High were among 142 Georgia high schools earning AP Humanities distinctions, given to schools with students testing in at least one AP English course, two history or social science courses, one fine arts course and one world language course.

AP STEM Achievement - East Coweta High, Newnan High and Northgate High were among 128 Georgia high schools earning STEM Achievement distinction, which is awarded to schools with students testing in at least two AP math courses and two AP science courses and at least 40 percent of AP math and AP science exams earning scores of 3 or higher.

AP Merit Schools - Northgate High School was among only 71 Georgia high schools named as a 2019 AP Merit school. The distinction is given to high schools with at least 20 percent of the total student population taking AP exams and at least 50 percent of all AP exams earning scores of 3 or higher.

Northgate is honored to be one of the 71 schools in Georgia to be named an AP Merit school,” said Northgate Principal Ken Kesselring. “I am very proud of the hard work of our students and teachers. In addition, we thank the parents of our AP students for the support they provide their children and to our school.”

“It’s essential that we offer a robust set of opportunities to Georgia students, and Advanced Placement is an important part of that,” State School Superintendent Richard Woods. “I congratulate the educators and leaders who worked to create strong AP programs in these 230 Georgia schools, ultimately connecting students with high-level coursework and the opportunity to gain college credit.”

Georgia’s public-school class of 2018 is ranked 16th in the nation for the percentage of students scoring 3, 4, or 5 on at least one AP exam during high school, and 13th in the nation for AP participation.

Orla Thomas, above, teaches Advanced Placement Chemistry at Northgate High School, which was recognized this week as a 2019 AP Merit School. Northgate, Newnan and East Coweta High Schools were all recognized by the College Board as 2019 AP Honors schools, in a number of categories.